Enterprise Application Systems are typically integrated software applications that perform business functions such as accounting, production scheduling, customer information management, human capital management, etc. They are frequently implemented on servers and simultaneously provide services to a large number of users, typically over a computer network. These systems are in contrast to the more common single-user software applications which run on a user's own local computer and serve only one user at a time. Typically, the Enterprise Application System (“EAS”) is implemented as a group of software modules sharing a common database. Examples of an EAS include a Customer Relations Management (“CRM”) system, a Manufacturing Resource Planning (“MRP”) system, and an Enterprise Resource Planning (“ERP”) system.
Enterprise Resource Planning is an industry term for integrated, multi-module application software packages that are designed to serve and support multiple business functions. An ERP system can include software for manufacturing, order entry, accounts receivable and payable, general ledger, purchasing, warehousing, transportation and human resources. Evolving out of the manufacturing industry, ERP implies the use of packaged software rather than proprietary software written by or for one customer. ERP modules may be able to interface with an organization's own software with varying degrees of effort, and, depending on the software, ERP modules may be alterable via the vendor's proprietary tools as well as proprietary or standard programming languages.
One module of the ERP system that enjoys widespread use is the human resources module. Through the human resources module employees of the organization typically have access to fellow employee's contact information, such as e-mail address, phone number, office location and so on through a worker directory. Data held in an ERP system is kept up to date, for example, when e-mail addresses or phone numbers are changed. However, if the employee knows more information about their fellow employees than is stored in the corporate directory, including private information such as cell phone numbers or home addresses, they would typically store this in a contact application such as Microsoft® Outlook. The conventional ERP system does not allow non-administrators to access or add to the ERP system. That means that the employee has to look in two places to find the complete set of information about their colleague. One way of dealing with this problem is to copy the ERP contact details into the Outlook contact list. However, then there is a risk of having out-of-date information, as the information is no longer linked and updated from the ERP system.